This invention relates generally to multimedia entertainment systems, and more particularly to karaoke systems.
Karaoke is a form of entertainment, originating in Japan, that features a live singer with pre-recorded accompaniment. Karaoke is a Japanese abbreviated compound word, where xe2x80x9ckaraxe2x80x9d comes from xe2x80x9ckarappoxe2x80x9d meaning empty, and xe2x80x9coke xe2x80x9d is the abbreviation of xe2x80x9cokesutura,xe2x80x9d or orchestra. Therefore, karaoke literally means xe2x80x9cempty orchestra.xe2x80x9d While originating in Japan, the karaoke boom has spread abroad, and is popular in Korea, China and other parts of Southeast Asia, as well as in the U.S. and Europe.
Karaoke music was originally recorded on audio tape, but quickly evolved with the advent of the compact disk, which not only allows rapid, non-serial access new songs, but which also can include multimedia effects such as video and lyrics. Therefore, the advent of the compact disk made it possible to enhance the karaoke experience with video scenes synchronized with the music and the accompanying lyrics.
Using technological innovations such as the video disk, laser disk, and CD graphics, karaoke has grown to be a major entertainment industry. Family-use karaoke sets are also available. However, there is an obstacle to this end of the business: since most Japanese houses stand close each other and are still built of wood, with poor soundproofing, it would be very annoying of the neighbors to sing into an amplified karaoke system at night.
Reacting to the opportunity created by this problem, entrepreneurs created the xe2x80x9ckaraoke boxxe2x80x9d, a roadside facility containing closed-door insulated rooms for singing. They are advertised as a place where you can xe2x80x9csing to your heart""s content.xe2x80x9d The first karaoke box appeared in 1984 in a rice field in the countryside of Okayama Prefecture, just west of the Kansai area. It was built from a converted freight car. Since then, karaoke boxes have been built on unoccupied grounds all over Japan, and in urban areas, karaoke rooms, which consist of compartments made by partitioning and soundproofing rooms in a building, were introduced and set up one after another.
Karaoke is a common form of entertainment for Japanese business people. It is not at all uncommon for workers to drop into a bar with colleagues after work, have a drink, and enjoy singing popular songs to the accompaniment of karaoke. Karaoke has been entertaining people ever since its invention 20 years ago, and has become firmly established in Japanese society.
Today, karaoke is available in a wide variety of formats, suitable for any venue, from a soloist rehearsing up to large crowds at community gatherings. However, a typical karaoke show includes one or two singers, and a possibly a karaoke operator to operate the karaoke equipment. Couples will often enjoy a karaoke session together. The equipment typically includes a player, an amplifier, and a television monitor for the music video. There may be an additional television monitor facing the singers to display the lyrics, or the lyrics can be displayed on the television monitory that is displaying the music video.
While karaoke is very popular, it may be reaching a saturation point, at least in Japan. This is because there are many thousands of karaoke boxes and bars having karaoke systems and, as such, the novelty is beginning to wear off.
One attempt to increase the interest in karaoke is the use of xe2x80x9cblue screenxe2x80x9d technology which allows a video camera to capture the image of one or more persons standing in front of a blue screen, and inserting the images of those persons into the music video. However, this technology is somewhat cumbersome in that it requires a specialized stage including the blue screen, and in that the karaoke customers are merely superimposed upon a background image of the music video without any interactivity with that background scene.
What would therefore be desirable is a karaoke system which allows new, enhanced, and interactive participation of karaoke customers with their karaoke experience.
In one embodiment of the interactive karaoke system of the present invention, a personal computer (PC) is paired with a karaoke audio/video system and a video camera to provide interactivity between the karaoke customers (i.e. the karaoke performers) and the karaoke system. In one aspect of the present invention, images of the karaoke customers are captured with a video camera, processed in the personal computer, and composited into the musical video presentation. However, unlike prior art xe2x80x9cblue screenxe2x80x9d technologies, no special blue screen is required, and the user can interact with the karaoke content as portrayed on the TV monitor. For example, the karaoke customer may make gestures which to cause the images on the TV monitor to change.
A process for providing interactive karaoke entertainment includes the acts of determining if there is a user initiation and, if so, whether the request of content is local. If not, the content is retrieved. Next, a xe2x80x9cframexe2x80x9d of video information is received by the video camera, and background subtraction is performed. Then, there is a tracking analysis, with the results being put into a tracking buffer. A gesture analysis is then performed. Next, the image is xe2x80x9ccompositedxe2x80x9d based upon the tracking and gesture analysis and the request of content. The resulting multimedia content is then outputted and, preferably, recorded. The next frame is then retrieved from the video camera and the process is repeated.
The interactive karaoke entertainment system is designed so that it can form a part of a larger network of karaoke entertainment systems. More particularly, a number of interactive karaoke entertainment systems are adapted to coupled to a local area network (LAN) which is served by a local PC server. The local PC server can communicate with an Internet based content server to download content that is not locally available and to upload accounting information.
The local PC server includes the acts of determining whether it has been polled by a content server and, if so, accounting information is transferred to the contents server and other information or software or content can be uploaded or downloaded with the content server. If there has been no polling, the local PC server then determines whether there is a request from a local PC that is coupled to the local area network. If there is, it is determined whether the content is locally available and, if not, the local PC server communicates with remote content server to obtain the desired content. The content is then downloaded to the requesting PC over the local area network and an accounting entry is created at the local PC server reflecting the karaoke customers use of that content.
It will therefore be appreciated that the interactive karaoke system of the present invention will add a new dimension of enjoyment to the karaoke experience. The interactive nature allows the karaoke to transcend a simple performance and take on aspects of an interactive game. This increases the enjoyment and therefore the use of the interactive karaoke systems of the present invention.
These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed descriptions and studying the various figures of the drawings.